It's never too early, here on Big Soccer. Ream, slipped under the radar to 18th in the MLS draft and props to the NYRB organization for spotting this fine young talent. He had a nice evening against the tricky and tempestuous strikers for Santos Saturday evening, appeared cool on the ball and completely ready for the season. Props to Principal Forbush for finding this article. http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/03/17/red-bulls-coach-likes-one-young-defender-in-particular/ Red Bulls coach Backe seems particularly high on the young man. “Tim Ream is close to being in the starting lineup,” Backe said. “He has a future. I probably shouldn’t say too much, but Ream has a chance to be a national team player. He’s a center back who is comfortable and calm in possession of the ball. He plays a good passing game, he’s an excellent passer. A European-type center back who, I think, reminds me of Rio Ferdinand in the Premier League. Ream is strong tactically and never stressed, and of course he’s good in the air. He has a top-class attitude and spirit.” Now the Big Soccer Jinx may even be stronger than the one attributed to Sports Illustrated. Let's roll the dice. Anybody out there familiar with this player? Let's roll.
Yeah it is. I figured he had to play one or two MLS games before this thread would pop up. I was wrong. We'll see.
Tim Ream, Michael Stephens, and Amobi Okugo are three MLS rookies I am looking forward to watching. We will see.
Was at the game. I don't want to jump to conclusions, but what I saw was VERY encouraging. It should be noted that from what I understand RBNY was playing a depleted Santos side that night. With the exception of a couple guys on the pitch (Neymar for one) this was really their reserves and/or bench guys. That being said he was incredibly calm on the ball in tight situations. His passing (minus one miscue that he flubbed out of bounds) was nearly perfect all night, and he also showed attacking prowess with his late run into the box which set up Petke's goal. The fans in my section were shocked at how good he was.
We'll have to see. In some ways he is similar to Michael Parkhurst. A little taller, but on the skinny side. His defensive style is about playing smart angles and avoiding heavy physical contact. But no matter how smart, defenders end up in lots of situations where the stronger guy muscles the ball away from the other guy. We'll have to see how he copes when that happens. I'm also interested to see what kind of speed he has. Again, playing smart limits the number of occasions when you have to win a footrace. But it doesn't eliminate those occasions. Backe's comments are the most interesting aspect to this whole thing. He has seen much more of Ream than any of us. If his comments came from a BS poster, they could be easily dismissed as the usual over-the-top flavor-of-the-month type enthusiasm. But Backe is a professional coach. And he doesn't seem to be the type who is prone to hyperbole.
True about Backe. As for the speed thing: Gooch, Boca, Spector, and Jay aren't that fast. As for size: Americans are used to big centerbacks being necessary whereas many great teams have smallish CB's. Ream is 6'-1" and 160lbs. Plenty tall and given that he's still a bit young he could easily put on another 10 lbs. of muscle IF it's necessary.
Being smart is essential for being a top defender though. He can always gain weight and with that will learn to be more physical. I think this league would be better off though with more players with Ream's ability and less thuggish defenders. He's still very young and I am excited to see how he adapts to MLS and professional football.
Yes.........it can be too early. The guy hasn't played one game as a professional yet. There are a whole group of kids with potential that join MLS each year. An astonishing number fall by the wayside, and aren't heard of ever again. I'm not saying we can't be interested and excited about new prospects.............but we have to temper it with some realism. I usually wait until the end of a player's first MLS season, before I start worrying about the national team. After that first season if he's looking good, we can bring him into camp cupcake (like Omar Gonzalez, Kevin Alston, Chris Pontius, etc. from the 2009 draft class.)
yep, my sarcasm meter wasn't showing enough either. https://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?p=20217289#post20217289 Koko, thanks for the live report.
No probs. The Red Bull Arena experience was unbelieveable (everything from mass transit, local bars/restaurants, to pre/post and live game experience). I could go on and on.. And hell the team looked pretty good too! Granted: Pre-season. Now it's time for them to put out The Fire! I must say I am truly blessed to be a season ticket holder for such an incredible venue.
That was the gag. Anytime someone talks about anyone new playing for the US national team, people immediately start yelling, "Cap Him Now!"
My UPDATED starting lineup vs England ............Howard Spector-REAM-Onyewu-Boca Demps-Clark-Bradley-Landon ...........Davies-Jozy
Followed shortly by (Gansler, Bora, Sampson, Arena and especially Bradley) is an idiot. Actually, Sampson was an idiot, but the rest are stupid for not playing them and claiming their pelt in the name of the good ole US of A.
The face that Agudelo played with the Red Bulls this preseason (including the last game vs. Santos) largely suggests he will sign with the Red Bulls. I was at the Red Bull Arena opener. It would be tough to turn down a chance to play there. The stadium is that nice.